Ashley Stiles

The Unbreakable Rachel Lopez Ashley Stiles, ENG 416: Eighteenth-century Literature Faculty Mentor: Professor Lisa Berglund, English This is an eighteenth-century creative writing project conceived within a loose guideline of parameters set by Dr. Berglund. The project is a descriptive narrative through the execution of letters and extensive research on eighteenth-century London. The purpose is to educate the reader on London in a time when societal norms for women were more restricting than today through the perspective of a woman named Rachel Lopez who was raised by a Jewish former lady's maid and her musician father. This creative writing dramatic piece specifically discusses a protagonist’s struggles with gin addiction and other unforeseeable societal pressures while discussing factual events and real historical figures in the letter-style narrative. There is a subtle balance of comedic relief to counter many intensely dramatic moments while astonishing expectations with plot twists as the heroine grapples with various climactic events. The subtle use of comedy is a tool utilized to help mask the potential, underlying mental pressures that eighteenth-century London imposed upon a young woman and cultural outlier dealing with many social struggles.